Kirill Marchenko trade rumors won't die down, and the Columbus Blue Jackets are in no rush to make them go away.
According to Aaron Portzline, nothing has actually changed on the Marchenko file over the past few days.
Marchenko won't reach unrestricted free agency until 2028, and he already has a contract in place for next season.
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That's the leverage Columbus is sitting on. No urgency, no deadline, no reason to blink first.
The Blue Jackets sit 18th overall at 40-30-12, and they've lost seven of their last ten games.
Columbus doesn't need to sell low just because the record looks rough right now.
If a trade happens, it's because somebody finally meets the price. Not before.
So who's actually chasing? The question in Montreal is whether Kent Hughes has genuinely zeroed in on Marchenko as a top-six piece.
And if he has, is Michael Hage untouchable in that conversation? Nobody around the Canadiens wants to answer that directly.
Michael Hage becomes the real price of admission
Alexander Zharovsky's name keeps surfacing too, tied to any package built around a proven top-six scorer.
But prospects alone won't move Columbus. Why would the Blue Jackets flip a proven scorer for projects with zero NHL mileage?
Offering futures for Marchenko right now is like walking into a dealership with a stack of IOUs. Columbus wants real currency, not promises.
Montreal sits sixth overall at 48-24-10, riding a plus-27 goal differential, which tells you the Canadiens aren't desperate either.
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Kent Hughes clearly likes what Marchenko brings to a top six. Whether he's willing to pay Columbus's number is still nobody's guess but his.
Should the Canadiens include Michael Hage in a trade for Kirill Marchenko?
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